Bamboo Forest and Golden Temple

Today was a fairly chilled day, we only have two things on the itinerary, the first of which is the famous Bamboo Grove of Arashiyama, in the village of Sagano on the west side of Kyoto. It is a short train journey to see this short but immersive walk. Now a famous tourist spot, known for its instagramability, it was originally a project undertaken by a monk in his search for inner peace and enlightenment. As I have mentioned before in both the Buddhist and Shinto religions there are many many ways to meditate, one of which is gardening, hence the bamboo forest. It is quite an experience, I have to admit but I walk through the forest rather quickly having been in China for a month before. Here bamboo is not something I have been missing in my life recently and the crowds are a bit much. Rachel tells us that you used to be able to wander between the bamboo itself really immersing yourself in the forest but now there is a very clear path everyone has to follow. Even with the path some how Mambo manages to get himself lost and the group ends up waiting for him at the meet up point for about thirty minutes before most of the group break off as Rachel goes looking for him. I stick around with Sarah at the edge of the forest waiting. Finally Rachel comes back saying she managed to get ahold of Mambo and he is back in the village we are going for lunch somehow, so we set off down to the village. I ask Rachel where is good to eat and she tells me she needs to find Mambo first before she can eat. Weirdly I am the person that he ends up running into first and we send a cheeky selfie into the chat to let everyone know he’s safe before meeting up with others for some lunch.

Once everyone has eaten and met up at the station, we are off to our next destination for the day: Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion) in northern Kyoto. This World Heritage site designated as one of Kyoto’s 17 Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto is a three storey building with the top two stories covered in gold leaf making this building a vivid sight contrasting wonderfully with the beautiful wooded surroundings. This Buddhist Zen Temple was originally a villa owned by a wealthy statesman Saionji Kintsune before being bought from the Saionji family by shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu to become part of his family’s estate. However, upon his death and at his request, his son turned it into the Zen Temple it is today. The only building in the estate to survive being burnt down during the Ōnin wars. Unfortunately the original building was burnt down by a novice monk in 1950 who then failed in attempting suicide and was imprisoned and then released at a later date due to mental illness. Although this pavilion has a fascinating history and, as mentioned, is visually rather stunning I do find myself getting more drawn into the silly games they have dotted around the walking path that you can play. My favourite being a deceptively hard game: a pot in the ground a meter or two from the barrier into which you are supposed to throw coins – a successful throw means good luck! So with my luck being what it is I go through all my coins and for three shots in a row my coin goes into and then bounces straight back out of the pot! So, having spent all my change, I continue my walk finishing at a load of vending machines full of snacks and drinks I would like to indulge in but now can’t because all my coins are in a pot or more accurately laying around a pot back down the trail.

The meandering Mambo and me

Bowling: Planning strategy

Once reconnected with the group some people head off to do different bits around town some shopping, some a tea ceremony others getting dressed in traditional outfits for photos. Me, I head back to the hostel to chill and relax. Later in the evening I meet up with Stephen and Luke in another one of these multi storey games building for some snooker. The evening ends with most of the group meeting for some quite intense games of bowling. It is during these games my new nickname becomes unveiled, having rejected T-dog and T-Bone, Mambo suggests to everyone’s delight the nickname T-wat which I have to admit I feel suits me more than the prior mentioned. I personally feel he gave me the nickname because I won the first game of bowling and he is without a doubt a better bowler than me! After the bowling Luke, Amanda, Stephen, Lucinda, Mambo and I stick around and play some darts before retiring back to our hostels for my final night with the group. We are all excited for tomorrow though as it is, according to Rachel, the day with the best activities and definitely a day I have personally been looking forward to since I booked the trip months ago!

Bowling: A sign of our game play?

Bowling: High Five

Bowling: All winners!